US Airports Block Homeland Security PSA Blaming Democratic Party for Government Shutdown

Several prominent international air travel hubs across the United States, including Phoenix Sky Harbor, Las Vegas's Harry Reid Airport, Seattle-Tacoma International, and Charlotte Douglas Airport in NC, have opted to restrict a public service announcement from Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem that faults Democrats for the current government closure from playing at their checkpoint areas.

Legal Concerns Raised by Airport Officials

Airport authorities in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Seattle, Washington, Portland, Oregon, Charlotte, and Westchester, New York have declined to display the footage at security checkpoints, stating that the political statements could breach federal and state regulations, such as the Hatch Act of 1939, which prohibits federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity.

“Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the U.S. government, and because of this, many of our activities are impacted, and most of our TSA workers are not receiving wages,” the Secretary said in the announcement.

The Port of Portland Reaction

The Port of Portland clarified that it “would not agree to airing the PSA in its current form, as we believe the federal law explicitly forbids use of public assets for partisan messaging.” It added that Oregon law bars public employees from supporting or criticizing any political party and that agreeing to play this video would break Oregon law.

Las Vegas Position

Las Vegas's Harry Reid airport also refused to show the TSA video on comparable reasons, saying in a release that “the video's message included partisan statements that did not align with the impartial, educational purpose of the PSAs usually shown at security checkpoints” and also cited the Hatch Act.

Explaining the Hatch Act

The Hatch Act is a federal law that forbids political activities by government employees to ensure that public services stay impartial.

Further Airport Rejections

• Phoenix airport airport explained that it “refused to display the PSA” to stay “in line with airport policy,” which does not allow partisan material.
• The Port of Seattle, which operates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, similarly refused, pointing to “the partisan tone of the video.”
• Charlotte Douglas International Airport said that state local regulations and the airport's rules for digital content “do not permit the video in question.” The authority also added that the TSA does not own any screens at its checkpoints and that its limited display monitors are designated for directions, travel information, and revenue-generating services.

Westchester Criticism

Westchester County, in a statement, described the PSA “unacceptable, unacceptable, and inconsistent with the values we expect from our nation’s top public officials.”

“The PSA politicizes the impacts of a federal government shutdown on security operations,” the county executive stated, noting that the tone was “unnecessarily alarmist” and “erodes customer confidence.”

DHS Response

A Department of Homeland Security official, an agency representative, repeated the Secretary's language to attribute fault to “partisan tactics” in a response, adding that “Democratic leaders will soon recognize the importance of opening the federal government.”

Bipartisan Calls for Resolution

The Port of Seattle commented that it continued to “encourage cooperative actions to end the government shutdown” and was striving to identify methods to assist government workers working without pay during the closure.